News & Stories
ResearchAberdeen Beach, FreetownJanuary 2025
Pioneering sustainability: testing composite beams at Aberdeen Beach
Trainees on Freetown's upcycling program took a new bamboo-and-PET composite beam into the surf at Aberdeen Beach to test its buoyancy, load capacity and durability.
The composite pairs bamboo's strength and flexibility with the buoyancy and resilience of recycled PET bottles — a system designed for structural efficiency and low-cost sustainability.
Immersing the beam in real aquatic conditions gave trainees hands-on insight into materials science, design engineering and the practicalities of building with recycled components.
Potential applications include floating walkways, small-boat construction for local fishing communities and floating mirror arrays for energy-rebalancing projects at sea.